Owen Bay

Location

Owen Bay, British Columbia Located on the southeastern shore of Sonora Island, near the junction of the Hole In The Wall with the Okisollo Rapids, Owen Bay is approximately 54 miles from Campbell River. Sonora Island was named in 1903 in memory of the Spanish schooner Sonora commanded by Juan Francisco de la Bodega Quadra, the Spanish naval officer who explored and charted the British Columbia coast in 1791.

Owen Bay, itself was named by Captain David Pender, R.N., master of the surveying vessel Beaver in 1864, after Commander Fredrick John Owen Evans, R.N., of the Admiralty Hydrographic Office. Owen Bay was first occupied in the early 1900s by loggers working for the Pacific Coast and Chemainus Lumber Company, with timber leases there and at Venture Point. When the company moved its operations elsewhere, the workmen moved as well. Today, the government dock and secluded anchorage at Owen Bay provide a popular stop for boaters exploring Desolation Sound. Water taxi transportation from Campbell River to Owen Bay is approximately 50 minutes.